Deep Impact (U.S.)

Updated May 8, 2019 | Infoplease Staff

Destination: Comet Tempel 1. Launched: Jan. 12, 2005. Arrival: July 4, 2005. End of project: April 2006. Mission: To look beneath the surface of a comet at material relatively unchanged from the solar system’s formation. With a fiery flash on July 4, 2005, the mission’s probe smashed into the comet at nearly 23,000 miles per hour. The flyby spacecraft took pictures of the impact, collected data from the probe, and flew through the comet’s tail. The project ended in April 2006.